Wellclose Square
Encyclopedia
Wellclose Square lies in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets
, between Cable Street
to the north and The Highway
to the south.
The western edge, now called Ensign Street, was previously called Well Street. The southern edge was called Neptune street. On the north side is Graces Alley, home to Wilton's Music Hall
. The centre of the square is occupied by St Paul's Whitechapel Church of England Primary School. On the western edge is another primary school, Shapla.
An old map shows a river running down each side of "Nightingall Lane" (now called Thomas More Street). In 1954 Kenneth Reid suggested this was one of London's "lost rivers" and ran from Well Street into the Thames. In 1686 the "Tower Liberty" was extended beyond the tower of London to include Minories, the Old Artillery Ground and Wellclose. The word "Wellclose"was used to indicate the whole area until the middle of the nineteenth century.
Daniel Defoe
mentions the square is his book "A tour thro' the Whole Island of Great Britain" (1724). He says that there used to be a well in the centre of the square. It was also known as Goodman's Field's Well.
was the architect of the Danish church, built in the centre of the
Square in 1696. He was the father of the playwright Colley Cibber
. According to the website
www.poetsgravesco.uk, Colley Cibber was buried in either this church, or Grosvenor chapel, Mayfair. The church was demolished in 1870. The Danish Church was depicted in paintings many times. The scientist and mystic Emanuel Swedenborg
(1688 - 1772) lived in ths square during the last year of his life. When Swedenborg came from Sweden to London in 1710 he went to the Swedish church in Princes Square, which used to be located to the east of Wellclose Square. The area is now called Swedenborg Gardens, and the tower block overlooking Wellclose Square is called Stockholm House. Swedenborg arrived in the same year as the Ulrika Eleanora Church was built in Princes Square. He was buried there. It closed in 1910, and in 1912/13 his remains were transferred to Uppsala Cathedral in Sweden. The church was demolished in 1921.
Hayyim Samuel Jacob Falk (1708 - 1782), a Rabbi and Kabbalist, moved to Wellclose Square in 1742 after narrowly escaping being burnt at the stake by the authorities in Westphalia who charged him with sorcery. He was known as the "Baal Shem of London" because of his reputation as a practical Kabbalist who worked miracles and appeared to have magical powers.
Thomas Day
(1748 - 1789) was born in Wellclose Square. He was a poet who wrote "The Dying Negro" about the death of a runaway slave. Later he wrote "The History of Sandford and Merton" (1783).
until his death. Dr Nathaniel Bagshaw Ward (1791 - 1868) invented the terrarium (a dry version of an aquarium). He invented it about 1829, because his ferns were being poisoned by the London air.
It also went by the name Wardian case
.
for "Royal Brunswick Theatre". The Royalty was built here in 1787 by John Palmer
.
John Braham
(1774 - 1756) sang at the Royalty in the same year that it opened, at the age of 14. It was burnt down in 1828. The "Royal Brunswick" It was built in its place in 1828. It collapsed almost as soon as it had been built, on 28 February 1828.
The Neptune Street Prison became familiarly known in the district as 'The Sly House'.
Also known as Wellclose prison, it has now been preserved inside the Museum of London, where you can see the names of prisoners, scratched on the wooden wall panels by prisoners using pine cones.
The letters were meaningless jumbles, which made them easy to detect as forgeries. A dealer in the city Road bought many of them. Charles Eaton died in 1879 in Wellclose Square.
Mariners church on Dock Street decided to build a sailors' home on the site. It was founded in 1830 and opened in 1835, with accommodation for 100 sailors. This was later expanded to 500. The main entrance was originally on Well Street, but later changed to be on Dock Street. The London Nautical School opened here in 1893. In 1955 it was modernised and renamed the "Red Ensign Club". Following the decline of the British Merchant Fleet, it closed in 1974. It is now a youth club. Well Street was renamed Ensign Street in honour of the hostel. According to
John Stape's biography "The Several Lives of Joseph Conrad", Conrad first lived in this sailor's home at the age of 21, and returned several times. There was a sugar refinery at the bottom of Dock Street and Well Street. It is mentioned by Charles Dickens in "The Uncommercial Traveller". According to Roy Palmer, one version of the sea shanty "Tiger Bay" makes reference to "Well Street", and suggests it was the one by Wellclose Square. (see "The Oxford
Book of Sea Songs" 1986).
London Borough of Tower Hamlets
The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London borough to the east of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It is in the eastern part of London and covers much of the traditional East End. It also includes much of the redeveloped Docklands region of London, including West India Docks...
, between Cable Street
Cable Street
Cable Street is a mile-long road in the East End of London, with several historic landmarks nearby, made famous by "the Battle of Cable Street" of 1936.-Location:Cable Street runs between the edge of The City and Limehouse:...
to the north and The Highway
The Highway
The Highway, formerly known as the Ratcliffe Highway, is a mile-long road in the East End of London, with several historic landmarks nearby. The route dates back to Roman times. In the 19th century it had a very notorious reputation for vice and crime and was the site of the infamous Ratcliff...
to the south.
The western edge, now called Ensign Street, was previously called Well Street. The southern edge was called Neptune street. On the north side is Graces Alley, home to Wilton's Music Hall
Wilton's Music Hall
Wilton's Music Hall is a grade II* listed building, built as a music hall and now a more general-purpose performance space in Grace's Alley, off Cable Street in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets...
. The centre of the square is occupied by St Paul's Whitechapel Church of England Primary School. On the western edge is another primary school, Shapla.
Early history
The abbey of St Mary Graces stood near Tower Hill until the dissolution of the monasteries.An old map shows a river running down each side of "Nightingall Lane" (now called Thomas More Street). In 1954 Kenneth Reid suggested this was one of London's "lost rivers" and ran from Well Street into the Thames. In 1686 the "Tower Liberty" was extended beyond the tower of London to include Minories, the Old Artillery Ground and Wellclose. The word "Wellclose"was used to indicate the whole area until the middle of the nineteenth century.
Daniel Defoe
Daniel Defoe
Daniel Defoe , born Daniel Foe, was an English trader, writer, journalist, and pamphleteer, who gained fame for his novel Robinson Crusoe. Defoe is notable for being one of the earliest proponents of the novel, as he helped to popularise the form in Britain and along with others such as Richardson,...
mentions the square is his book "A tour thro' the Whole Island of Great Britain" (1724). He says that there used to be a well in the centre of the square. It was also known as Goodman's Field's Well.
A playwright, two mystics and a poet
Caius Gabriel CibberCaius Gabriel Cibber
Caius Gabriel Cibber was a Danish sculptor, who enjoyed great success in England, and was the father of the actor, author and poet laureate Colley Cibber. He was appointed "carver to the king's closet" by William III....
was the architect of the Danish church, built in the centre of the
Square in 1696. He was the father of the playwright Colley Cibber
Colley Cibber
Colley Cibber was an English actor-manager, playwright and Poet Laureate. His colourful memoir Apology for the Life of Colley Cibber describes his life in a personal, anecdotal and even rambling style...
. According to the website
www.poetsgravesco.uk, Colley Cibber was buried in either this church, or Grosvenor chapel, Mayfair. The church was demolished in 1870. The Danish Church was depicted in paintings many times. The scientist and mystic Emanuel Swedenborg
Emanuel Swedenborg
was a Swedish scientist, philosopher, and theologian. He has been termed a Christian mystic by some sources, including the Encyclopædia Britannica online version, and the Encyclopedia of Religion , which starts its article with the description that he was a "Swedish scientist and mystic." Others...
(1688 - 1772) lived in ths square during the last year of his life. When Swedenborg came from Sweden to London in 1710 he went to the Swedish church in Princes Square, which used to be located to the east of Wellclose Square. The area is now called Swedenborg Gardens, and the tower block overlooking Wellclose Square is called Stockholm House. Swedenborg arrived in the same year as the Ulrika Eleanora Church was built in Princes Square. He was buried there. It closed in 1910, and in 1912/13 his remains were transferred to Uppsala Cathedral in Sweden. The church was demolished in 1921.
Hayyim Samuel Jacob Falk (1708 - 1782), a Rabbi and Kabbalist, moved to Wellclose Square in 1742 after narrowly escaping being burnt at the stake by the authorities in Westphalia who charged him with sorcery. He was known as the "Baal Shem of London" because of his reputation as a practical Kabbalist who worked miracles and appeared to have magical powers.
Thomas Day
Thomas Day
Thomas Day was a British author and abolitionist. He was well-known for the children's book The History of Sandford and Merton which emphasized Rousseauvian educational ideals.-Life and works:...
(1748 - 1789) was born in Wellclose Square. He was a poet who wrote "The Dying Negro" about the death of a runaway slave. Later he wrote "The History of Sandford and Merton" (1783).
Two scientists
John Thomas Quekett (1815 - 1861) was a pioneering histologist. His brother Edwin lived at 50 Wellclose Square. John moved in with his brother. In 1839 John founded the "Royal Microscopical Society". He was conservator of the Hunterian MuseumHunterian Museum and Art Gallery
The University of Glasgow's Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery is the oldest public museum in Scotland. It is located in various buildings on the main campus of the University in the west end of Glasgow.-History:...
until his death. Dr Nathaniel Bagshaw Ward (1791 - 1868) invented the terrarium (a dry version of an aquarium). He invented it about 1829, because his ferns were being poisoned by the London air.
It also went by the name Wardian case
Wardian case
The Wardian case, was an early type of sealed protective container for plants, which found great use in the 19th Century in protecting foreign plants imported to Europe from overseas, the great majority of which had previously died from exposure during long sea journeys, frustrating the many...
.
Two theatres and a prison
There are unusual bollards on Ensign Street, with the mark "RBT". The initials standfor "Royal Brunswick Theatre". The Royalty was built here in 1787 by John Palmer
John Palmer (actor)
John Palmer was one of the most highly-regarded actors on the English stage in the eighteenth century.-Birth and youth:He was born in the parish of St Luke's, Old Street, London, about 1742, was son of a private soldier...
.
John Braham
John Braham
John Braham was a tenor opera singer born in London, England. His long career led him to become one of Europe's leading opera stars. He also wrote a number of songs, of minor importance, although The Death of Nelson is still remembered...
(1774 - 1756) sang at the Royalty in the same year that it opened, at the age of 14. It was burnt down in 1828. The "Royal Brunswick" It was built in its place in 1828. It collapsed almost as soon as it had been built, on 28 February 1828.
The Neptune Street Prison became familiarly known in the district as 'The Sly House'.
Also known as Wellclose prison, it has now been preserved inside the Museum of London, where you can see the names of prisoners, scratched on the wooden wall panels by prisoners using pine cones.
The Billy and Charley forgeries
Starting in 1857, William Smith and Charles Eaton made lead-cast forgeries of antiquities.The letters were meaningless jumbles, which made them easy to detect as forgeries. A dealer in the city Road bought many of them. Charles Eaton died in 1879 in Wellclose Square.
The Red Ensign club
Following the destruction of the "Royal Berwick Theatre" Rev George Smith of the MethodistMariners church on Dock Street decided to build a sailors' home on the site. It was founded in 1830 and opened in 1835, with accommodation for 100 sailors. This was later expanded to 500. The main entrance was originally on Well Street, but later changed to be on Dock Street. The London Nautical School opened here in 1893. In 1955 it was modernised and renamed the "Red Ensign Club". Following the decline of the British Merchant Fleet, it closed in 1974. It is now a youth club. Well Street was renamed Ensign Street in honour of the hostel. According to
John Stape's biography "The Several Lives of Joseph Conrad", Conrad first lived in this sailor's home at the age of 21, and returned several times. There was a sugar refinery at the bottom of Dock Street and Well Street. It is mentioned by Charles Dickens in "The Uncommercial Traveller". According to Roy Palmer, one version of the sea shanty "Tiger Bay" makes reference to "Well Street", and suggests it was the one by Wellclose Square. (see "The Oxford
Book of Sea Songs" 1986).